


Watch your step

by frecklebombfic (frecklebomb), Vidriana



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fae, Audio Format: M4B, Audio Format: MP3, Audio Format: Streaming, Author Commentary, Community: pod_together, Dubious Morality, Gen, Gen or Pre-Slash, M/M, Mind Control, Non-Graphic Violence, Original Character Death(s), Podfic, Podfic & Podficced Works, Podfic Length: 1.5-2 Hours, Podfic Length: 45-60 Minutes, Possessive Behavior, Sentient Forest, Sound Effects
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-27
Updated: 2017-08-27
Packaged: 2018-12-14 22:18:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,609
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11792625
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/frecklebomb/pseuds/frecklebombfic, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vidriana/pseuds/Vidriana
Summary: “Come on, this isn’t funny anymore,” the man gasps out, running now to catch up with William. “This forest is fucking creepy. We should get out of here.”William can’t quite suppress a smile. “You could try to leave,” he suggests, not without humor, even though his companion is likely too scared to notice. “Though I doubt you’ll have much success.”There’s a quick intake of breath. “What’s that supposed to mean?”





	1. Podfic

**Author's Note:**

> notes from author Vidriana and podficcer frecklebombfic! 
> 
> \- thank you to the mods for organising, and to Paraka for hosting!  
> \- the podfic is on chapter 1, and the fic text is on chapter 2.  
> \- for chapter 1 on mobile, please scroll to the side for links.  
> \- we have recorded a creator's commentary with lots of extras and meta, so whether you read or listen to this, you might enjoy coming back and listening to the commentary afterwards (transcript available).  
> \- our full notes are at the end.  
> \- enjoy!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Additional Warnings** : The rating of this fic is due to themes of violence and death. Furthermore, this fic contains a main character whose sense of morality relies on fae rules, not human ones, and therefore some of his actions are morally dubious at best. All violence and deaths are off-screen. There are no issues of consent or coercion in regards to sexual relationships.

  
Cover design by frecklebombfic  
Image by Johannes Plenio [@ Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/@jplenio) | 

### Podfic

###### Streaming: podfic only

(Use mp3 link for mobile streaming)

###### Downloads: podfic only

Duration: 46:31

  * [MP3](http://pod-together.parakaproductions.com/2017/%5BHRPF%5D%20Watch%20Your%20Step.mp3)  |  **Size:** 51.0 MB
  * [M4B](http://pod-together.parakaproductions.com/2017/%5BHRPF%5D%20Watch%20Your%20Step.m4b)  |  **Size:** 65.6 MB
(right click and save-as to download) 
  
---|---  
  
  


  
Cover design by frecklebombfic  
Image by Lukas Neasi [@ Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/@lukasneasi) | 

### Podfic & commentary

###### Streaming: creator's commentary only

(Use mp3 link for mobile streaming)

###### Downloads: creator's commentary only

Duration: 51:12

  * [MP3](http://pod-together.parakaproductions.com/2017/%5BHRPF%5D%20Watch%20Your%20Step%20-%20creator's%20commentary.mp3)  |  **Size:** 51.6 MB
  * [M4B](http://pod-together.parakaproductions.com/2017/%5BHRPF%5D%20Watch%20Your%20Step%20-%20creator's%20commentary.m4b)  |  **Size:** 72.2 MB



###### Downloads: podfic & creator's commentary

Duration: 46:31 podfic + 51:12 commentary (total 1:37:44)

  * [M4B](http://pod-together.parakaproductions.com/2017/%5BHRPF%5D%20Watch%20Your%20Step%20-%20podfic%20and%20commentary.m4b)  |  **Size:** 137 MB
  

  
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**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notes at the end of the [next chapter](http://archiveofourown.org/chapters/26618259#work_endnotes)


	2. Text

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Additional Warnings** : The rating of this fic is due to themes of violence and death. Furthermore, this fic contains a main character whose sense of morality relies on fae rules, not human ones, and therefore some of his actions are morally dubious at best. All violence and deaths are off-screen. There are no issues of consent or coercion in regards to sexual relationships.

The forest is dark, the sinking sun barely reaching through the thick green of the intertwined treetops, casting the underbrush in shadow and hiding the treacherous tree roots that crisscrossed the narrow, treaded path. 

The man’s foot catches on one of them, concealed by the shade and impossible to see, making him stumble and almost fall to the ground. He manages to stay upright, but his arm scrapes against the trunk of a tree that he could have sworn had not been that close a moment ago. “Hey, wait up,” he calls out, breathless, his voice shaking slightly, tinged with a hint of fear. 

William doesn’t wait or even just slow down. He has no trouble walking among his trees and their roots, his feet barely making a sound on the soft forest floor as he follows the familiar trail. 

“Hey,” the man says again, more desperate than the first time, almost scared. “We need to turn around, it’s getting dark.” William is almost impressed by how little his voice shakes. 

It’s not really getting dark though. Not here at least. The night had broken hours ago where the human world breaches William’s territory, but his forest is still bathed in twilight, alive and beautiful and unchanging.

“Do you want to see the lake or not?” William asks, without losing a step, his voice cold. 

The man hesitates. “I don’t really— Look, can we just go back?” he sounds like he’s pleading now. Pathetic. William can hear the stomping of his feet as he tries to speed up, to walk faster, to catch up to William. “We can come back tomorrow, yeah? Try to find it again?” 

William snorts, an undignified noise he normally wouldn’t make, but he couldn’t care less what his current company thinks of him. “I’m not trying to find it, I know exactly where it is,” he says calmly, still walking, never even slowing down. “You don’t have to follow me.”

The steps behind him stutter, as the man’s leg catches on the vines of a bush that’s growing across the path, and William hears him swear as thorns pierce through his jeans, ripping at the thick material and leaving bloody scratches on his skin. “Come on, this isn’t funny anymore,” the man gasps out, running now to catch up with William. “This forest is fucking creepy. We should get out of here.”

William can’t quite suppress a smile. “You could try to leave,” he suggests, not without humor, even though his companion is likely too scared to notice. “Though I doubt you’ll have much success.” 

There’s a quick intake of breath. “What’s that supposed to mean?” 

This time William glances back over his shoulder to take in the pale face of the man. “Oh, I always mean just what I say. It’s one of my better qualities, I’ve been told.” He shoots the man a beatific smile with just a hint too much teeth to be genuine, before he continues his walk deeper into his forest.

“What— Does that mean I can’t leave?” The man sounds full on panicked now, and this time when his steps speed up he actually catches up with William. “Hey, I’m talking to you!”

He grabs at William’s shoulder and pulls him to a sudden stop, almost making William stumble. 

For a moment it almost seems like the light in the forest dims, the long, dark shadows of the trees seeming to dominate the soft glow of twilight for a split second. Then William shrugs the hand off his shoulder and turns around to survey his rude companion, who is looking around like a spooked horse.

The man — or is he just a boy? William can never quite tell, has never bothered to learn about humans and how they age — looks exhausted. His dark hair is a tousled, sweaty mess that curls around his ears and falls over his forehead. His cheeks are flushed in the parts that are not covered by coarse stubble, but the rest of his face looks almost sickly pale, like his blood isn’t circulating properly. 

He’s not going to last long.

William turns his back on him and makes to continue his path without saying a word. “Please,” the man says and tries to follow William, but his foot catches on a tree root again and this time he can’t catch his balance. There’s a scream of pain as his ankle gives out, and a loud thud as his body hits the floor.

William stops and looks back at the man, lying there in the dirt, cradling his injured foot, making soft wounded noises, like an animal. William looks down at him, not trace of compassion on his face. The man tries to sit up.

“I’m sorry,” he sobs and the way he’s looking at William now is fearful, like he’s finally realized that the most dangerous part of the forest is standing right in front of him. “I didn’t mean to— I just want to go home,” he pleads.

“Why did you come here?” William asks, voice betraying nothing. 

“I was just hiking. Looking for a bit of adventure, you know?” He looks up at William, beseeching, like he’s expecting some kind of ratification.

“Why did you come to this forest?” William asks, his eyes cold and his face stony. The man pales even more. A bead of blood drips off his forearm — the one that had been caught by a tree earlier — and falls to the ground, where it sinks into the dry forest floor instantly. 

He fidgets, staring down at his hands, uncomfortable. “I heard some stuff about it,” he admits. “The people in the village, they said— I mean, they were telling all these stories about people disappearing and stuff. Ghost stories, you know? I just had to check it out for myself.”

William raises an eyebrow, his mouth quirking in a crooked, cruel little grin. “You came here because people told you not to?” 

The man wipes at his face before his hands flatten back down as he gestures helplessly. “I was curious,” he defends. “I just wanted to show that there’s no need to be scared of ghosts! I don’t believe in any of that stuff anyway.” His voice wavers at the last bit and William can see his throat work as he swallows heavily.

William nods thoughtfully. “Look at me,” he commands and the man finally looks up at his face again, meeting his eyes. William gives him a reassuring smile, putting as much warmth as he can spare into it. 

“You don’t need to be afraid of any ghosts,” he says, his voice gentle, and the man visibly relaxes, his shoulders slumping in relief. “They don’t exist. They’re not going to hurt you.”

Then William’s smile widens, his lips drawing back to expose perfect, white teeth — a little sharper than usual — and his clear, cold blue eyes gleam, reflecting a light source that can’t be seen in the cool twilight of the forest.

“You really should have known better than to anger the fae though. We don’t take kindly to intruders, and you’re not welcome in my forest.”

**—————**

“What have you been up to?” Victor asks, turning his full attention to William. His frame is so large and imposing, towering over him, even as they’re sitting down along the river bank, but his eyes are kind and open. William has always liked that about him. 

He doesn’t respond.

Victor sighs. “You’ve done it again, haven’t you?”

Silence.

“I told you not to do it anymore. It’s cruel.” His voice is full of reproach.

William doesn’t know what to say. “It’s their own fault if they wander into my forest,” he deflects, “they should know better.”

Victor gives him a long, piercing look, his eyes sad. “And you have never done anything to encourage them?”

William picks at a fallen leaf and doesn’t look at him. “They’re breaking the rules,” he murmurs finally.

“And therefore they all deserve to die? Even the ones that don’t know about us?” Victor asks, pulling the fallen leaf out of his hands to get his attention.

William tries to answer but he can’t. He stays silent instead and avoids Victor’s heavy gaze.

“You shouldn’t have so much death in such a beautiful place,” Victor says gently.

“I heard it makes the trees stronger,” William responds defiantly.

“If anything it makes them bloodthirsty,” Victor retorts, “and it makes you _cruel_.”

**—————**

There’s a woman lingering just outside of the border to his realm, admiring a group of wild flowers, unusually vibrant and colorful, as flowers growing this close to fae territory often are. 

William can see her from where he’s sitting, high up in an oak tree, shrouded in green and brown leaves. She can’t see him, and she can’t see the border either, unaware that just one step too far could seal her fate.

She’s close, but she hasn’t crossed over yet. She hasn’t broken any laws, not even the ones she can’t know about unless people in the town at the rim of the forest have been telling tales again. For the moment she’s safe, as she snaps one more picture on her phone, capturing a flower of such a vibrant blue that it almost seems to be glowing in the dimming evening light. 

She turns to leave, to go back to her hotel, or maybe a room that she’s rented for a week, and she’s so close to making it, to being able to tell her friends about the lovely Swedish countryside and the beautiful flowers. 

Then she hesitates, turns back to the flowers and delicately plucks a single, perfect blossom. 

William’s eyes narrow, but he forces himself to stay calm. She’s not in his realm. Those are not his flowers, even if they’ve doubtlessly absorbed some of his magic. She can have one if she so desires and he shouldn’t judge her. They really are very pretty after all.

Then the woman reaches down, grasps all of the delicate stems in her hand at once, and pulls. The roots of the flower pull free and William’s fists clench. Unaware of the eyes watching her, the woman curtly rips off the roots, keeping only the stems and the bright blue blossoms in her hand before she turns to leave.

William is not going to let her leave. 

The trees around him rustle as he jumps down onto the ground, even though there is not a single breeze moving their leaves.

“Hello there,” he calls out to the woman, his voice friendly and light.

The woman starts and turns around, her hands raised and ready to defend herself, but she lets them fall when she sees him standing just outside of the shade of the trees, bathed in the gentle rays of the evening sun piercing the foliage above.

“Hello,” she says, hesitant, but curious, and William smiles at her, open and friendly. She lets her gaze wander over his face, because there’s no reason she knows of that she shouldn’t. Their eyes meet and William’s smile widens into a grin that’s not quite human. 

She blinks, slow and dazed. 

“Those are very beautiful,” he says, motioning towards the flowers she’s holding and she looks down at her hands, surprised, like she’d forgotten they were even there. 

“Oh. Yes,” she agrees slowly and then looks back at William, her head bent to the side slightly and her eyes looking glassy.

“I like the red ones even better,” William continues, as if they’re chatting over tea instead of across an invisible border between two worlds.

“Red..ones?” the woman asks, and it’s fairly obvious that she’s already fully under his spell, but William prides himself on being thorough.

“Well, they don’t grow here,” he says, making his voice sound a bit contrite and adding an apologetic smile. “I can show you where they do though.”

The woman doesn’t even blink. “Yes, please,” she says, still not taking her eyes off of him. William reaches out his hand for her and she goes without hesitation.

She steps over the border.

**—————**

He really does like the red flowers better. They look nice surrounding her body. William likes how the color stands out stark against her blond hair. 

He wonders if the pretty flowers gave her some comfort as her heart stopped beating, as she took her last breath, if she could still appreciate their beauty then. 

He doesn’t stay to look at her for long. The decomposition process always seems foul to him, especially when its natural progression is sped up by his forest.

And despite what Victor might have implied, he hasn’t actually developed a taste for death, just a dislike for people who do not treat his forest with the respect it deserves.

**—————**

The forest is covered in a thick layer of white. Tiny ice crystals cling to the leaves of the bushes, as green as they ever were, and adorn the trunks of the trees. William’s feet leave tracks in the snow as he walks the well-trodden path to his favourite lake. He doesn’t often invite winter into his forest, but whenever he does it’s a sight to behold.

Falling snowflakes catch in his hair and stay there, never melting or even losing form. The forest is quiet and the ground beneath his feet is unyielding in its frozen state, but William can still feel the living network of roots just underneath the surface. He breathes in the clear air and enjoys the tranquility all around him.

The serenity is broken by a soft clinking noise, when he gets closer to his lake. Soon he can also hear a soft scraping sound and he speeds up his steps.

The lake is frozen over completely, the part of it that extends into William’s forest, as well as the half of it that is still firmly located in the human realm. On the lake is a man, skating in tight circles in front of a slightly rusty goal and occasionally firing the puck he’s guiding with his stick at the net.

William kneels down behind a wild blackberry shrub, still green and vibrant even in the cold temperature, and watches.

He’s not entirely unfamiliar with the concept of this game. Oliver had told him stories of how he sometimes let children play hockey on the lake located just inside his territory in the winter, how he had sometimes even joined in and just let them walk away afterwards. Oliver had _always_ been a bit strange.

Still, William has never seen anyone dare to skate on this lake before. Only a complete fool would not recognize the fae territory all around, the borders clearly defined by the harsh contrast of the leafless, sleeping trees of the human world, and the healthy green of William’s. 

The man spins in a circle and shoots at the net again, and now William can see that he’s set up some kind of obstacle course for himself with some of the stones from the shoreside. 

William is fascinated. The man’s movements are smooth and elegant, so different from how humans usually seem to act, and the way his whole body follows the movement of his stick whenever he shoots a puck, fluid and powerful, is beautiful.

It’s only when the sky in the human world starts to darken that William even realizes he’s been watching for hours. The man on the lake also seems to notice the break of the evening, because he starts collecting his scattered pucks and the stones, before he sits down on the shore to take off his skates.

William doesn’t _want_ him to leave. 

He’s only just discovered this strange new fascination and he doesn’t want to give it up. He’s furious suddenly, that this human would dare to capture his attention and then try to leave without giving William the satisfaction of...he doesn’t quite know.

He just knows that there’s a sudden, burning desire in him to make the man stay, to make the man keep playing for him. 

Without any conscious thought William steps out of the underbrush and onto the icy surface of the lake. The man doesn’t notice him — unsurprising, given the dimness of the light — so William decides to speak.

“Hello,” he says, voice friendly and enticing, honey-sweet. The man startles and looks up, his eyes widening when he sees William. He scrambles to his feet and takes a bow in William’s direction, a bit clumsy and awkward, so different from the way he’d moved on the ice. 

“I am sorry,” he stutters out in English — a curious choice of language, given that it doesn’t come easily to him, and doesn’t seem to be his native tongue — and then he gathers up his gear in one quick motion, grabs the bag with his pucks, and hastily disappears into the forest where William cannot follow him. 

William remains standing on the lake, the ice creaking ominously beneath his feet. 

He clenches his fists and the soft twilight of the forest dims to a more sinister darkness when he walks back between the trees.

————— 

Time passes differently in his forest, but still not fast enough. He is not sure how to pass the hours until his human comes back, so consumed are his thoughts still by the encounter. If he comes back at all. 

He isn’t there the next morning and doesn’t show up, even when William spends all day lingering at the edge of the lake until he eventually has to admit defeat. He stomps his way through the forest, no bird song accompanying him, and even the nettles that usually greet him with loving arms whenever he passes them keep their distance. 

Days pass and William keeps thinking of his human. A part of him remains furious. How dare that man run away from him and leave him without an explanation? He vows to ensnare him the next time he gets too close, to meet his gaze and captivate him, and to make him skate and shoot until his poor human body cannot take it anymore and the exhaustion takes him. It’s what he deserves for causing William such distress after all.

When a week has passed and the man still hasn’t returned, William concludes his constant watch of the lake, only returns once a day to check in with the frozen water lilies to see if there’s any news. After a month he even stops doing that and pretends to forget about the incident.

And if the next human that gets too close to his territory dies falling through the surface of the frozen lake and drowns in the icy water, he can almost convince himself that it’s not related to his skater at all.

**—————**

It’s not until a year later that his human shows up again. William is woken by the soft rustling of the trees around him, excited chattering they don’t deign necessary whenever they’re weighed down by snow. Not unless something extraordinary happens.

He’s awake and on his way within seconds, different emotions warring within him. Part of him wants to make the human pay for making him wait, another part of him is excited to see him again, but most of all he’s...nervous. Nervous that it won’t really be his human — the trees are even worse at telling humans apart than William — or maybe that William won’t be as intrigued this time. Most of all, that his human will leave again and then never return. 

It’s the same human, even though he looks different. He seems bulkier, somehow, and maybe a bit taller. Possibly he’s still young, his body still changing and growing.

He’s gotten better as well. His skating is even smoother, his strides longer and his movements fast, more sure. His shots seem to find their target more easily as well, the loud pinging of a puck hitting the posts or the crossbar only seldom ringing through the air.

William doesn’t dare to move the entire time he watches. He remains hidden behind his blackberry shrubs, not making a single sound. He doesn’t reveal himself, even when his human keeps glancing over at his side of the lake, surveying the underbrush nervously in irregular intervals.

When the sun starts to set and his human starts to gather his equipment, William has to grab one of the the branches of the shrub in front of him to stop himself from reaching out, from trying to stop him leaving again. The thorns pricking his skin help him focus and he jealously watches as his human lets his gaze drift across the lake once more, before disappearing in between the trees that don’t belong to William. 

He spends the night in the very same blackberry shrub, not daring to sleep, waiting for the sun to rise again, for his human to come back. He didn’t scare him this time, didn’t make his presence known in any way. There is not a single reason he shouldn’t return the next day. 

And he does come back. Not as soon as the sun rises, and not even when it is at its zenith, but when the shadows of the trees are already starting to get longer he emerges from between the trees, out of breath and looking disheveled. He checks his surroundings, before putting on his skates and starting with his practice drills.

When he leaves that evening, William isn’t quite as worried, but an underlying tension still makes him stay close by throughout the night. It only abates when his human returns the next day, goes through the same graceful motions, glancing over at William’s territory every once in awhile.

They settle into a routine over the next few days, but William isn’t bored, finds small, new aspects to cherish every single time he watches. One day his human finally manages to execute a shot from a difficult angle, and his enthusiastic jumping in celebration makes William smile. Another day he accidentally trips over one of the stones laid out as obstacles and falls, and despite the clumsiness, William is endeared instead of put off. Some days nothing out of the ordinary happens and still there’s no other place William would rather be.

**—————**

One day, a puck bounces off the crossbar at a strange angle and slides over the frozen surface of the lake, coming to rest just inside the invisible line that separates William’s part of the lake from the rest. 

William’s breath catches. The human freezes. For a moment, everything is held in a precarious balance while William waits, then the human moves again, simply picks up another one of his pucks and continues playing.

William breathes out, his mind running wild. He tries to keep watching, but his eyes keep wandering back to the single puck lying on his side of the lake, unable to concentrate on anything else. 

He doesn’t move though, stays still and hidden until his human is gone from the lake, safe and unharmed, then he steps out onto the frozen surface and comes to stand above the lost puck, assessing it with curious eyes.

If the human had tried to pick it up that would have been enough, he would have been caught in William’s realm. But he hadn’t. 

William briefly considers leaving the puck out as a trap, but he doubts his human is thoughtless enough to forget about the border and reach for it. He could keep it as a souvenir, a gift of a sort, even accidentally presented. Instead, he gives the puck a gentle push, just strong enough to send it sliding back into the human realm.

**—————**

It’s only when the human steps onto the lake, already dressed and ready to practice, that he sees the discarded puck. He freezes, eyes widening, and he looks just slightly to the right of William’s hiding spot before quickly averting his gaze again. Slowly he backs away from the unmoving object, back to the shore where his shoes are resting in the fallen snow.

William frowns, irritation welling up inside him.

“Why are you leaving?” he says, forgetting how the human had fled and not returned for a whole year the last time he’d spoken to him. If it wasn’t for the absolute quiet of the forest around them, his words probably wouldn’t have carried all the way across the lake, but it’s clear to see that the man hears something, because he looks around frantically. In his attempt to get away faster his skates slip out from underneath him and he falls down on the hard, unforgiving ice.

He doesn’t get up right away and William hands clench, his fingers digging into the frozen ground in front of him, before he quickly gets to his feet. He comes out from behind his shrub, walking towards the man, wanting to check up on him, to make sure he’s not hurt. When the man sees him coming though, he scrambles backwards, trying to get away, and William stops in his tracks.

“Stop that,” he says, displeasure clear in his voice, and the man freezes again. From this close, William can see that he’s shaking, his whole body gripped by tiny little tremors and his fingertips are pressing into the ice underneath him like he’s looking for something to hold on to. His head is bowed and turned away from William.

William’s frown deepens. 

“Don’t be scared,” he says, and it sounds like a command instead of a plea. The human nods, a quick and jerky movement, but his body doesn’t lose any of its tension. He still doesn’t look up and William feels angry all of a sudden. “Why were you trying to leave?”

The man twitches and starts to lift his head, but then shakes it once and looks back down. “I’m sorry,” he says again, in Swedish this time, although that doesn’t seem to be his native language either. “I didn’t want to disturb you.”

William cocks his head to the side. “You’re not disturbing me,” he says, trying to keep his voice even, to not let it shine through just how much he means it. “That’s why I gave you your puck back. As a sign of my...” he trails off, looking for the right word. “Appreciation,” he finally settles on, his voice softer than before. Then he frowns again. “Refusing a gift is quite rude, you know?”

The human shudders. “I didn’t mean to— I just thought—” He’s struggling to find the right words and William is getting impatient. 

“Speak in whatever tongue comes easiest to you. I’ll understand,” he says, aloof, pretending he isn’t sharing centuries-old secrets with a human whose name he doesn’t even know.

The man nods, hesitant this time. “I’m sorry,” he repeats in Czech, his voice steadier now, “I didn’t want to take anything that’s yours.”

It’s surprisingly considerate. In fact, everything about the human’s behavior is surprisingly considerate, respectful, and distant. William doesn’t like it.

“Well, it’s a gift, so you should take it.” He gestures towards the puck still lying on the ice, a couple of feet in front of the man. He doesn’t move, still doesn’t lift his head. 

William clicks his tongue in annoyance, then he summons up a small gust of wind that sends the puck sliding forward until it gently bumps into the human’s legs and comes to a halt there. 

The man looks at him suddenly, his head flying up and his eyes meeting William’s for just the briefest of moments. They widen in shock, as he realizes the fatal mistake he’d just made, and he squeezes them shut hastily, a futile gesture if William actually wanted to hurt him. 

William doesn’t want to hurt him. Doesn’t see any joy in taking away his will and making him do as he pleases. He’s not quite sure what he wants instead, though.

He crosses his arms in front of his chest, feeling angry for reasons he can’t quite explain. The icy wind picks up a bit, pulling at the human’s hair and clothes as it rushes past. He doesn’t say anything and doesn’t move.

After a minute, the human carefully opens his eyes again and looks down at the ice in front of his feet. His hands reach out and slowly close around the puck. 

“Thank you,” he says, voice hoarse, and William has the distinct impression that he’s not just grateful for the gift, that he’s aware of the mercy William just showed him. “Did you—,” he starts and William can see that his cheeks are starting to turn red. “Did you do anything to it?”

The question throws William. “No.” He watches in fascination as the human’s shoulders droop slightly.

“Oh,” the man says softly, and carefully strokes over the smooth surface of the object in his hand, looking down at it, a bit lost.

“Do you want me to?” William asks, reaching out his hand for the puck, mind already racing with ways he could charm it, give his human some protection, some good fortune, instead of just a useless reminder of William to carry around with him.

“Oh, no!” the human says, shaking his head frantically and clutching William’s puck to his chest. “I wouldn’t know what I could possibly give you in return.”

William cocks his head to the side. He hadn’t considered the possibility of extracting payment from his human, had simply intended to give him another gift, but this seems like too wonderful an opportunity to pass up. 

“I would have a promise from you,” he says, his tone casual, almost bored, while his whole body tingles at the prospect of finally having some influence over his human. 

The man lifts his gaze, just enough to stare at the feet of the fae standing in front of him. “I really don’t—” he starts, but William interrupts him.

“That sport you play is quite dangerous, isn’t it?” he asks, nonchalantly, examining a falling snowflake as it lands on his hand and slowly starts to melt. The human’s throat moves as he swallows. “Wouldn’t it be nice if you didn’t have to worry about that? No injuries, no pain…”

“Wouldn’t that be cheating?” the man asks, but William can tell his resolve is already weakening. He makes a disparaging noise.

“It wouldn’t make you invincible. Just less susceptible to...bad luck, let’s say.” 

The human takes in a quick breath, his hands tightening around the puck he’s still holding. “And what do you want in return?” he asks finally, and William knows that he has him. He smiles.

“I’d have you return to me.” His voice is warm and gentle, almost loving. “Whenever you leave, wherever you go, I’d have you come back here, at least once every year.” 

“Oh,” the human says softly, almost inaudible. He takes another deep breath, then he looks up, not meeting William’s eyes, but staring at a spot on his chest, just above his heart. “Yes, okay. I want that.”

“Wonderful,” William says warmly. “I just want one more thing.” The human stiffens, body drawing back slightly, defensive.

“What’s that?” he asks, voice shaking slightly, but trying to keep up a brave face, not lowering his eyes. William is endeared.

“What’s your name?” he asks gently, walking closer until his feet touch the invisible border separating them. 

The human looks up at him from where he’s still sitting on the frozen surface of the lake, the cold wetness soaking into his clothes where they touch the ice.

“David,” he says, “my name is David.”

William smiles at him, fond with just a hint of something else underneath, and reaches out. “Well, come on then, David,” he says, holding his gaze, steady and unblinking. “Come here.”

Slowly, David gets up and comes closer until he’s standing in front of William, just outside of William’s realm, but close enough to touch. He’s taller than William in his skates, but somehow he still looks small. A soft, icy breeze sweeps across the lake, mussing up David’s hair and caressing his skin, making him shiver.

William reaches into a pocket of his shirt and pulls out an acorn, a small, living offspring of his favourite tree, looming large and imposing right at the heart of his forest. 

“If you take this, you’ll be safe,” he says, benevolent, holding out the acorn to David.

 _If you take this, you’ll be mine_ , he wants to say.

David pulls off his thick winter glove and hesitantly reaches his hand over the unseen boundary of William’s realm. He brushes William’s hand when he reaches for the acorn and his skin feels pleasantly warm against William’s. He marvels at the contact for a second, at how close his human is to him now. 

When David’s fingers close around the acorn, he looks up and meets Williams eyes for the second time that day.

“Thank you,” he says, so quiet it could almost be a whisper.

“Oh, no,” William responds, a smile spreading across his face, making his eyes shine playfully. “Thank you.” 

**Author's Note:**

> Commentary transcript available here: [link to google document](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZPTrlpEKwIIfAv8PSs5UMOyLAIC41rDn5BZHuDkH5TI/edit?usp=sharing).
> 
> \- - -
> 
> The music used in the podfic is Save Me From What I Want by St Vincent ([studio version](https://youtu.be/MdZSzM_mzT8) and a [live version](https://youtu.be/grqIpfyNM-M)). The title is from the podfic music - the backing vocals during the podfic intro, if you're ever re-listening.
> 
>  _Author/Vidriana end note:_ Dell, thank you as always for all the support throughout the writing process! I feel really honoured that I got to write something for you to record and writing something specifically to be recorded was lots of fun! This might be my favourite thing I've ever written and that's mostly due to you reading it, because it just adds so much to the story!
> 
>  _Podficcer/frecklebombfic end note:_ Jo! Thank you for writing me this wonderful, creepy piece of magic, and giving me an excuse to use all the atmospheric sound effects I could handle! I can't believe this is only the first time we've worked together, but I'm glad we were so ambitious with it, because we totally pulled it off.
> 
> If you enjoyed the story, please leave any kind of comment, we love comments! Also, if you're at all curious about this 'verse, please consider listening to the creator's commentary (on the Podfic page at chapter 1), where we talk meta and worldbuilding a WHOLE BUNCH. (If you want to ask any questions about stuff in the commentary, please feel free do that in the comments, too!) 
> 
> You can also find us on Tumblr: ([frecklebombfic](https://frecklebombfic.tumblr.com/) & [Vidriana](https://vidrianawrites.tumblr.com/))!


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